- Robert D. Knapp
Infobox Military Person
name=Robert D. Knapp
born=birth date|1897|12|26
died= death date and age|1994|04|25|1897|12|26
placeofburial=Arlington National Cemetery
caption=Robert D. Knapp withAirco DH.4 bomber, ca. 1920
nickname=
placeofbirth=Moreland, Georgia
placeofdeath=
allegiance= flagicon|United States United States of America
branch=United States Air Force
serviceyears=1918-53
rank= Brigadier General
unit=
commands=Air Corps Primary Flying School, Brooks Field 44th Observation Squadron 7th Observation Squadron 321st Bombardment Group 57th Bomb Wing
battles=World War I World War II Korean War
awards=Silver Star Distinguished Flying Cross Bronze Star
relations=
laterwork=Robert Duane Knapp, Jr. (
December 26 1897 –April 25 1994 ) was a Brigadier General in theUnited States Air Force and an aviation pioneer. He held United States pilot license #185 and led the first Allied aerial attack onRome inWorld War II . Knapp received aSilver Star for leading an unescorted bombing raid on a fighter-defended Axisconvoy in 1944. [United States Air Force Office of History, " [http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/rdknapp.htm Robert Duane Knapp, Brigadier General, United States Air Force] ", retrieved March 8, 2008; "321 Bombs Italy First", "321 in the News", July 19, 1943, 5.]Robert D. Knapp was born in Moreland, Georgia, but grew up in Auburn,
Alabama . When Knapp was 10 years old, theWright Brothers stayed in his home for a short time while consulting with professors at nearby Alabama Polytechnic Institute, an event which shaped Knapp's future career. After completing his studies atAuburn High School in 1917, Knapp applied for Army officer training, but was turned down due to his age. Instead, he was accepted as an aviation cadet, receiving his wings and being commissioned as a second lieutenant onMarch 9 1918 . Knapp went to theUnited Kingdom with his unit, the 92d Bombardment Squadron, in August 1918, but failed to see action inWorld War I due to a late shipment of propellers for his unit's Handley Page O/400 bombers. [United States Air Force Office of History, " [http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/rdknapp.htm Robert Duane Knapp, Brigadier General, United States Air Force] "; Auburn University, " [http://www.eng.auburn.edu/programs/aero/about/history/early-years.html Aerospace Education and Research at Auburn University - From the Wright Brothers' Flight School to the Space Station] ", retrieved March 8, 2008.]After returning from Europe, Knapp was assigned to the 96th Aero Squadron, charged with aerially patrolling the US-Mexican border after a Mexican cross-border raid on
El Paso, Texas in 1919. In 1921, Knapp was given command of Flight "A" of 12th Aero Squadron at Camp Stephen B. Little inNogales, Arizona , where for the next two years he patrolled the Arizona border. In 1923, he was transferred toMaxwell Field inMontgomery, Alabama foraerial mapping missions; while there, he flew the firstair mail route between Montgomery andNew Orleans, Louisiana . After four years at Maxwell, Knapp was assigned to Kelly Field inSan Antonio, Texas , where he was a flying instructor at the flight school. Having been promoted tocommandant of the Air Corps Primary Flying School at nearby Brooks Field in 1929, he was appointed commanding officer of the 44th Observation Squadron in thePanama Canal Zone in 1931. He later commanded the 7th Observation Squadron, also in Panama, before returning to Kelly Field in 1934 as Director of Flying Training. [Air University, " [http://www.au.af.mil/au/goe/eagle_bios/1988/knapp_1988.html Robert D. Knapp] ", retrieved March 8, 2008; United States Air Force Office of History, " [http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/rdknapp.htm Robert Duane Knapp, Brigadier General, United States Air Force] ".]Knapp in 1937 lead a 98-aircraft squadron of Advanced Flying School students on a cross-country tour to recruit ROTC cadets into aviation. In 1938, he attended
Air Corps Tactical School and was an instructor for the 154th Observation Squadron of theArkansas National Guard . He became the executive officer of the 1st Bomber Command atLangley Field nearHampton, Virginia in 1940.United States Air Force Office of History, " [http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/rdknapp.htm Robert Duane Knapp, Brigadier General, United States Air Force] ".]After the United States entered
World War II in 1941, Knapp organized six bombardier groups, trained three of them, and took command of one, the 321st Bombardment Group. The 321st was assigned to North Africa, flying raids against Axis forces inB-25 Mitchell bombers. In July 1943, Knapp's 321st launched the first full-scale US bombing raid on an Axis capital with Knapp flying the lead plane in an attack onRome . In 1944, Knapp led an attack—without fighter escort—on an Axis shipping convoy that had fighter protection. For that attack, Knapp was awarded aSilver Star . Later in 1944, Knapp was promoted to brigadier general and given command of the 57th Bomb Wing, a position he held for the remainder of the war. [United States Air Force Office of History, " [http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/rdknapp.htm Robert Duane Knapp, Brigadier General, United States Air Force] "; "321 Bombs Italy First", "321 in the News", July 19, 1943, 5.]After the war, Knapp became chief of the US Air Force Mission to
Argentina . Knapp retired from the Air Force in 1953, and returned home to Auburn, Alabama. Knapp died in Alabama onApril 25 1994 .ee also
References
External links
* Air University, " [http://www.au.af.mil/au/goe/eagle_bios/1988/knapp_1988.html Robert D. Knapp] "
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